(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a still image producing apparatus which records and produces digital images, in particular, to a still image producing apparatus having a slide show function for consecutively displaying a plurality of digital images.
(2) Description of the Related Art
As a conventional method for consecutively reproducing still images, there is a display method, called a slide show, for consecutively displaying still images per certain period of time. For example, the above mentioned slide show is realized by PC software such as a photo cinema and a movie shaker, and a camera cellular phone.
Here, the slide show means, a so-called digital picture story show in which a digital still image to be displayed is switched (i) per certain period of time or (ii) by a trigger such as a user's specification, as well as a slide projector. Also, in recent years, entertainment features in some applications have been improved, by adding (i) background music (BGM) and (ii) transitions such as fading, wiping and rotating when switching digital still images.
As an example of the conventional slide show apparatus, there is one which consecutively produces still images using a CD-ROM (for example, refer to Laid-Open Japanese Patent application No. 2001-103415, pp 3-5 and FIG. 1). FIG. 18 is a structure diagram of a conventional slide show apparatus 1800 described in the Laid-Open Japanese patent application No. 2001-103415.
In the slide show apparatus 1800, a CD-ROM 1806 is set in a CD-ROM reading unit 1805, and the activation of a slide show performing program 1806a is specified by an input specification unit 1802. An operation control unit 1801 reads in the slide show performing program 1806a, so as to function as a slide show performing unit. When performing a slide show, the operation control unit 1801 first reads in an order table 1806b, and extracts image files, from an image file group 1806c, in such order as predetermined in the order table 1806b, so as to cause a display unit 1803 to display the images. A hard disk 1804 saves various data according to need.
However, the conventional slide show reproducing apparatus only produces image files according to the order table. And, there is a problem that the above mentioned slide show is predictable, thus not interesting to a user. Also, another problem is that there are few variations in the image production. This is the same problem in the case where BGM is played along with the slide show.
Moreover, according to the conventional slide show reproducing apparatus, communication using images between slide show apparatuses is not considered at all. A slide show which supports recent networking is not provided, either.